MVP crown beckons Quiambao

Kevin Quiambao is on track to clinch another Most Valuable Player (MVP) diadem after leading De La Salle University to the top spot after the first round of Season 100 University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball tournament.

Quiambao leads the race after posting 87.571 statistical points (SPs) built on 16.43 points, 8.86 rebounds, 5.43 assists and 1.29 steals in the first seven games of the Green Archers where they registered a commanding 6-1 win-loss card.

University of the Philippines playmaker JD Cagulangan is at the second spot with 77 SPs after posting 13.4 points, 6.0 assists and 4.4 rebounds in the first round.

Third is another Green Archer in Mike Phillips with 72.143 SPs while Precious Momowei is at fourth with 68.286 after helping University of the East (UE) shut down the first round with a sizzling five-game winning streak.

At No. 5 is Far Eastern University’s foreign student athlete Momhamed Konateh with 63.571 SPs while University of Santo Tomas’ troika of Forthsky Padrigao, (62.429), Mo Tounkara (60.0), and Nic Cabañero (55.857) as well as Joshua David of La Salle (55.857) and Quentin Millora-Brown of UP (54.714) round out the top 10.

In their previous game against the Fighting Maroons, a match that was heavily billed as a preview of this season’s finals showdown, Quiambao’s MVP form was in full display.

With UP erasing a 15-35 deficit and knotting the count at 42 in the third period, Quiambao buckled down to work as he knocked down back-to-back baskets that gave them a 49-52 lead entering the final quarter.

Since then, La Salle was in control as UP struggled to find its groove in the fourth period leading to its first setback of the season.

Quiambao said he sacrificed his role as a veteran to give his other teammates like David, Phillips, CJ Austria and Lian Ramiro the confidence they needed in maintaining their fourth-quarter deficit.

“I sacrificed my role as a veteran because I realized that I can’t score all the time,” Quiambao said following their 68-56 win late Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

“I also have to involve my teammates. Since we made those adjustments, good things have happened to us. It was there that I realized that I have to follow the coaches if we want to win unlike in our first four games.”

He added that he is putting the team ahead of his personal goals, including winning the coveted MVP title.

“Since we lost to UE, we just stuck to our system,” he said.

“I sacrificed my role as a veteran, realizing I don’t always need to score. I also need to involve my teammates. Since we made those adjustments, a lot of good things have happened to us.”